Restraint Device And Method Of Use

ABSTRACT

A restraint device includes first and second restraint and/or support portions adapted to extend around part of a person. First and second connector portions may secure the first and second restraint and/or support portions to the person. A lock member may be used to selectively prevent disconnection of the first and second connector portions. One or more removable tags or other information elements may be carried on at least one of the first and second restraint and/or support portions and may indicate who placed the restraint device on, or removed the restraint device from the person, and/or what time the restraint device was placed or removed. The tags or other elements may include a unique identifier to indicate whether the restraint device had been previously removed from the person after an initial placement. The restraint device may include an electronic information element configured to transmit information related to the wearer.

CROSS REFERENCES

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/461,559 filed Aug. 1, 2006 (pending), which claims the benefit ofU.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. Nos. 60/704,367 and 60/742,835,respectively filed on Aug. 1, 2005 and Dec. 6, 2005, the disclosures ofwhich are expressly incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention generally relates to body restraints, such ascervical collars used to immobilize or brace the head and neck region ofa patient or other restraining devices for immobilizing or preventingunwanted movements of one or more body portions of a person such as apatient, etc.

BACKGROUND

Cervical collars have been used for many years to immobilize or bracethe head and neck region of patients who have undergone head or necktrauma, or who are at risk for spinal cord injuries should the head orneck of the patient be moved prior to either full diagnosis or treatmentby a physician. For example, many trauma patients of automobileaccidents or other types of accidents are treated by emergency medicalprofessionals in the field and, as either a necessary or precautionarycourse of treatment, the field technician may apply a cervical collar tothe victim at least until the time that an emergency room physician orother physician determines that the patient is no longer at risk forspinal cord injury should the cervical collar be removed. Typically, thecervical collar is comprised first and second halves which are generallysemi-circular in shape and fit around respective front and rear portionsof the patient's neck. These two halves are secured together by strapswhich typically incorporate hook and loop fastening material for quick,easy and yet secure attachment of the straps to each other. When it isdesired to remove the cervical collar from the patient, straps on one orboth sides of the collar are disconnected by simply pulling the strapsaway from the collar to disengage the hook and loop fastening material.

Unfortunately, the ease with which a cervical collar may be removed froma patient and/or the inability to determine who removed the collarand/or what time the collar was removed, can create problems leading topremature removal of cervical collars from patients. This can result inspinal cord injury or other injury to the patient. For example,emergency room medical personnel may remove the collar prior toobtaining approval from the physician in charge of the patient. Whethersuch emergency room personnel remove the collar due to simply mistakenbelief that approval to do so has been obtained, or in disregard ofproper protocol, avoidable injuries to the patient may be the result. Inother situations, it may be the patient himself, or a member of thepatient's family, or an acquaintance of the patient that removes thecollar for any of a variety of reasons. The patient, for example, may bebelligerent such as in the case of a trauma patient that was involved ina vehicle accident while driving under the influence. In such a case,the patient may be generally uncooperative and this may include attemptsat removing any restraining devices, including their cervical collar.

A report by The Institute of Medicine entitled “To Err Is Human:Building a Safer Health System” estimates that 44,000 patients die eachyear due to medical errors. Some studies place the number of deaths ashigh as 98,000. Total national costs (e.g., lost income, production,disability, etc.) as a result of medical errors are estimated to bebetween $17 billion and $29 billion. Of this amount, almost half ishealthcare costs. Cervical collar safety is one important area toaddress.

As the healthcare system continues to experience growth, issues ofcommunication will continue to be a challenge for all healthcareworkers. For example, in the field of acute cervical collar application,when a cervical collar is placed by a medic in the field, few if anymechanisms are in place for assuring that the medic will accuratelycommunicate with a subsequent healthcare worker regarding the time thatthe patient received the cervical collar. Factors that contribute toimpaired communication between healthcare workers may include, but arenot limited to, differences between technical specialties (EMT medic vs.nurse), gender related issues (male v. female), hierarchical issues(trauma surgeon v. nurse) and corporate issues (healthcare worker v.hospital corporation). Other issues influencing communication anddocumentation of application of the cervical collar include the methodof documentation in the patient's chart. Some healthcare workers mayalways document application and/or removal of the cervical collar andsome workers may not document application/removal of the collar at all.If an error occurs resulting in neurological injury, and the collar isoff the patient, liability might be placed on any of those individualsinvolved with the care of that patient. This results in greaterfinancial stress on an already burdened healthcare system.

In the field of chronic cervical care, there is also a need forhealthcare workers to communicate the removal and application of thecollar. Frequently, cervical collars must be left on a patient forprolonged periods of time to stabilize the neck. As the cervical collaris left in place for long periods of time, a healthcare worker mustclean under the collar and ensure that there is no skin breakdown.Current cervical collar technology does not afford a standardized way todocument that the collar has been removed, the skin has been inspected,and collar has been reapplied.

A device is needed to help minimize medical errors involving theplacement and removal of a cervical collar in both the acute and chroniccare states. Such a device could encourage communication among varioushealthcare workers, with regard to a cervical collar placement. What isneeded is a device that will standardize the application and removal ofa cervical collar, thereby lowering the possibility of medical errors.Whether cervical collar care is provided in the emergency room or thenursing home, what is needed is a cervical collar designed as a supportsystem for cervical collar communication between healthcare workers andthe healthcare system.

In view of at least the above-mentioned issues, it would also bedesirable to provide improvements that help ensure that cervical collarsare only removed when an appropriate medical professional has determinedthat doing so would not unnecessarily risk additional injury to thepatient. It would also be helpful to know if the cervical collar hasbeen inappropriately removed or tampered with while on the patient.Various other challenges exist with regard to any number of restraintdevices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention, in one general aspect, provides a cervical collarcomprising a first support portion configured to extend around andsupport a first portion of the neck of a patient. A second supportportion of the cervical collar is configured to extend around andsupport a second portion of the neck of the patient. In all of theembodiments, the support portions may be separate pieces or componentsor portions of the same piece or component. A first connector portion iscoupled with the first support portion, and a second connector portionis coupled with the second support portion. The first and secondconnector portions have respective first and second coupling memberscapable of being selectively connected together to secure the first andsecond support portions around the first and second portions of the neckof the patient and disconnected to release the first and second supportportions from around the first and second portions of the neck of thepatient. A lock member is coupled to at least one of the first andsecond support members and is configured to selectively prevent thefirst and second coupling members from being disconnected in a mannerthat would allow the release of the first and second support portionsfrom around the first and second portions of the neck of the patient.

The first connector portion may further comprise a strap and the firstcoupling member may further comprise one of a hook and loop fasteningmaterial. The other coupling member would then comprise the other of thehook and loop fastening material. The lock member may further comprise atie that includes a one way fastening mechanism adapted to allow the tieto be configured into a loop. The loop may, for example, then extendtransversely across one of the straps that serve as a connector portionsuch that the strap may not be pulled and completely disconnected fromthe mating strap or other connector portion. At least one of the firstand second support portions may include a grommet member generallyadjacent at least one of the first and second connector portions throughwhich the lock member may extend. In another aspect, a cutting mechanismmay be coupled with at least one of the first and second supportportions and configured to cut the lock member to allow the first andsecond coupling members to be disconnected.

In another aspect of the invention, which may or may not be used inconjunction with the use of a lock member on the cervical collar, aremovable tag or other information element may be carried on at leastone of the first and second support portions. This type of element maybe used to indicate at least one of, for example: 1) who placed thecervical collar on a patient; 2) who removed the collar from thepatient; 3) what time the collar was placed on the patient; and 4) whattime the collar was removed from a patient. Information elements such asbar code elements, RFID elements, fingerprint patches or othermachine-readable elements may be used. Still others include voice chipsor any other information element capable of at least assisting with therecordation of the desired information. Other information that suchelements may give can relate to location of the collar. For example, anyelectronic locating technology (e.g., global positioning system or GPS)may be used and incorporated into the collar or other restraint deviceof this invention.

Multiple, single use lock members may be carried on at least one of thefirst and second support portions. In this manner, when a first lockmember has been cut off of the cervical collar, for example, and thecervical collar needs to be used again, a second single use lock membermay be taken from a suitable location on the collar and used once againto lock the connector portions in place. As another aspect, each of thesingle use lock members may have a unique identifier to indicate to amedical professional whether or not the collar has been removed from apatient after initial placement on the patient. For example, acolor-coded system may be used whereby a first dispensed lock member iscolored red, a second single use lock member is colored orange and athird single use lock member is colored yellow. In this manner, if theorange lock member is secured in place over the connector portions, thenthis establishes that the red lock member had already been used and cutoff the collar. Therefore, the collar had presumably been removed fromthe patient and reapplied and locked using the orange lock member. Thisconcept may be more broadly applied to the collar by simply utilizing aplurality of removable tags carried on at least one of the first andsecond support portions. Each of the removable tags would likewise havea unique identifier to indicate to a medical professional whether or notthe collar had been removed from the patient after initial placement onthe patient. The unique identifier could, for example, comprise adifferent color on each of the removable tags. These tags may or may notalso include additional information input by a medical professional suchas the time that the collar was applied to and/or removed from thepatient, and/or the name of the individual that applied the collarand/or removed the collar.

The invention further contemplates various methods of attaching and,optionally, locking a cervical collar to a patient. In one method, thefirst support portion is secured around a first portion of the neck ofthe patient. A second support portion of the cervical collar is securedaround a second portion of the neck of the patient. A first connectorportion is secured or fastened to a second connector portion in order tosecurely couple the first and second support portions of the collar tothe neck of the patient thereby securely immobilizing the neck of thepatient. A lock member is secured to selectively prevent the first andsecond connector portions from being disconnected in a manner that wouldallow the release of the first and second support portions from aroundthe first and second portions of the neck of the patient. The lockmember may be part of a manually operable mechanical locking system.

In another aspect, a method of attaching a cervical collar to a patientcomprises securing a first support portion of the cervical collar arounda first portion of the neck of the patient. A second support portion ofthe cervical collar is then secured around a second portion of the neckof the patient. A first connector portion coupled with the first supportportion is fastened to a second connector portion coupled with thesecond support portion to securely couple the first and second supportportions to the neck of the patient thereby securely immobilizing theneck of the patient. Using an information element associated with thecollar, the method further comprises indicating at least one of: 1) whoplaced the cervical collar on a patient, and 2) what time the collar wasplaced on the patient. The method may further comprise indicating on aninformation element associated with the collar at least one of: 1) whoremoved the collar from the patient, and 2) what time the collar wasremoved from the patient.

In another aspect, a method of attaching a cervical collar to a patientcomprises securing a first support portion of the cervical collar arounda first portion of the neck of the patient. A second support portion ofthe cervical collar is then secured around a second portion of the neckof the patient. A first connector portion coupled with the first supportportion is fastened to a second connector portion coupled with thesecond support portion to securely couple the first and second supportportions to the neck of the patient thereby securely immobilizing theneck of the patient. Using an element associated with the collar, themethod further comprises indicating whether the collar was previouslyremoved from the patient. As mentioned above, this may includeindicating removal of the collar using color-coded elements associatedwith the collar.

In another aspect, various portions of the collar may be formed from orhave high visibility features such as fluorescent, reflective,luminescent, and/or glow in the dark material or characteristics tofacilitate greater visibility to a user. For example, one or moreportions of the lock system and/or information elements may be formedfrom materials having one or more of these high visibility features, ormay otherwise be modified to have one or more of these high visibilityfeatures. The removable tags may also have one or more of these highvisibility features. This would, for example, allow a user to morereadily see and manipulate the removable tags, lock system, etc. before,during or after applying or removing the collar.

In another aspect of the invention, a lock and/or identifier (e.g., tag)system may be placed onto an existing conventional collar allowing oneor more of the methods described herein to be performed with respect toexisting, conventional collars without modifying the collar itselfduring manufacture thereof to include one or more of the inventivefeatures discussed herein.

In another aspect of the invention, a restraint device for limitingmovement of a wearer, such as a cervical collar or a restraint devicefor use in security or law enforcement applications, may include atleast one electronic information element associated with the restraintdevice. The electronic information element may be configured to transmitinformation related to the wearer of the restraint device. The restraintdevice may additionally or alternatively be configured to recordinformation related to the wearer of the restraint device.

Any of the features disclosed herein may be incorporated into anyrestraining device adapted to restrict unwanted movements of a body of aperson. Such persons may or may not be patients of medicalprofessionals. For example, they may instead be detainees of lawenforcement officials.

These and other features, objects and advantages of the invention willbecome more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art uponreview of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a patient wearing a cervical collarconstructed in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2A is an enlarged perspective view of the collar shown in FIG. 1,illustrating the strap of one support portion of the collar disconnectedfrom a connecting portion on another support portion of the collar.

FIG. 2B is a perspective view similar to FIG. 2A, but illustrating thetwo support portions of the collar connected together.

FIG. 2C is a view similar to FIG. 2B, but illustrating a lockedcondition of the collar.

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2A, but illustrating an alternativelock system for the collar.

FIG. 4A is a cross sectional view generally taken along line 4A-4A ofFIG. 3.

FIG. 4B is a cross sectional view similar to FIG. 4A, but showing thetwo support portions of the collar connected together, but unlocked.

FIG. 4C is a cross sectional view similar to FIG. 4B, but illustratingthe process of assembling the lock member to the collar.

FIG. 4D is a cross sectional view similar to FIG. 4C, but illustratingthe fully connected and locked condition of the collar.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the connector portions of thecollar and an alternative locking system.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 5, but illustrating analternative embodiment using identification tags.

FIGS. 7A-7C are respective cross sectional views of an alternativeconnector region of the collar illustrating an integrated lock membercutting mechanism.

FIG. 8A is a perspective view of a cervical collar including a locksystem comprised of a pop-out lever portion that may be used to lock theconnector strap of the collar in place.

FIG. 8B is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 8A showing the lever ina pivoted, locked position.

FIGS. 9A-9C are cross sections generally taken along line 9A-9A of FIG.8A and showing the operation of the pop-out, pivoting lever.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged view similar to FIG. 8B, but showing another typeof lock member that may be snapped or otherwise fastened into placeacross the connector strap of the collar.

FIG. 11 is a perspective, partially fragmented view of a collar withanother alternative lock in the form of a strap that may be appliedtransversely across one of the connector straps of the collar andfastened into place with a push fastener.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are cross sections showing that the strap of FIG. 11may be stored in a concealed location as shown in FIG. 12A, and pulledout and fastened across the connector strap of the collar as shown inFIG. 12B.

FIGS. 13 and 13A are perspective views showing aftermarket versions oflock systems that may be used in conjunction with conventional collars.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged perspective view illustrating another alternativelock system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 illustrates a patient wearing a cervical collar 10 constructed inaccordance with one illustrative embodiment of the invention. Thecervical collar 10 includes first and second support portions 12, 14configured to immobilize, or at least brace the patient's head and neckregion. In regard to the illustrative collar 10, support portions 12, 14are respective halves of the collar 10, however, other numbers ofsupport portions may be used instead. Such cervical collars may have anynumber of design characteristics and the cervical collars illustratedherein are simply representative in nature. The cervical collar 10 maybe formed of many different types of materials, and include manydifferent types of design features and capabilities. It is to beunderstood that the inventive concepts discussed and claimed herein maybe applied to all types of cervical collars including one-piece collarshaving the requisite support portions adapted to be wrapped around apatient's neck. In this case, the “support portions” will be respectiveparts of a single wrap-around structure. Alternatively, multi-piececollars may be used in which the support portions are comprised ofseparate pieces brought together around a patient's neck. Theillustrated cervical collar 10 includes first and second halves 12, 14,which comprise front and rear halves of the collar 10, coupled by astrap system or connector system. In the illustrated embodiment of FIG.1, a first connector portion 16 is secured to the front half of thecollar 10, and the rear half of the collar includes a mating strap 18having one end 18 a securely fastened to the rear half of the collar 10and another free end 18 b extendable over the connector portion 16coupled with the front half of the collar 10. The strap 18 and connectorportion 16 have coupling members which, in this illustration, comprisemating hook and loop fasteners. The strap 18 may have the hook portionof the fastener and the connector portion 16 on the front half of thecollar 10 may have the loop portion of the fastener, or vice versa.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, and 2A-2C, a pair of grommets 20, 22 aresecurely fastened to the front half of the collar 10 and extend from thesupport portion 12. These grommets 20, 22 are extendable throughrespective slots 24, 26 in the strap when the strap 18 is laid over theconnector portion 16. Thus, the collar 10 may be placed on the patient,and then the strap 18 may be placed over the connector 16 portion suchthat each slot 24, 26 receives a respective grommet 20, 22 (as shown inphantom lines in FIG. 2B). This pushes an identification tag 30 awayfrom the strap 20 forcing the person applying the collar 10 to take thetag 30 off the strap 20 and prompting them to write their name on thetag 30 and the time that the collar 10 was applied to the patient.Removal of the tag 30 exposes the grommets 20, 22 such that a suitablelock member 40, such as a zip tie or other type of locking member, maybe extended through the grommets 20, 22 and locked in place as shown inFIG. 2C. This prevents the strap 18 from being pulled fully away fromthe underlying connector portion 16. Therefore, to remove the collar 10,the lock member 40 (or zip tie in this case) must first be removed, asby cutting the tie 40 with a pair of scissors (not shown), before thestrap 18 may be fully pulled away from the underlying connector portion16 such that the two collar halves 12, 14 may be removed from thepatient. As further shown in FIG. 2B, lock members 40 a, 40 b may beserially dispensed in a suitable manner from a location on the collar10, such as by retaining multiple single-use lock members 40 a, 40 b ina pocket of the collar, or otherwise integrating the single use lockmembers with the collar so that they are used one at a time in apredetermined sequence. In this manner, for example, a first lock member40 a or tie may be colored red, a second lock member 40 b or tie may becolored orange, a third lock member (not shown) may be colored yellow,etc. Therefore, if the orange lock member 40 b is secured in place onthe collar 10 which is applied to the patient, this likely means thatthe red lock member 40 a, which was previously dispensed and presumablyused, was cut off and the collar was removed from the patient and thenreapplied and locked using the second single use lock member 40 b. Theselock members 40 a, 40 b may be coupled together such that a small amountof force will allow the first lock member 40 a to be quicklydisconnected from the second lock member 40 b which is still retained inplace and ready for subsequent use. Of course, many other methods ofintegrating lock members into the collar will be recognized by those ofordinary skill in the art.

The tags 30, best shown in FIG. 2C, include both an “on time” set oftags 30 and an “off time” set of tags 32. These tags 30, 32 would befilled out by the personnel that apply the collar 10 and remove thecollar 10 so as to identify the person that either applied the collar orremoved the collar and also identifying the time of application orremoval on the corresponding tag 30, 32. The filled out tags 30, 32, forexample, may be maintained in the patient's chart at the hospitalthereby serving as record of the application and removal of the collar10 to and from the patient, as well as the personnel that carried outthe application and/or removal of the collar 10, and/or the time ofperforming the application and/or removal procedures. It will beappreciated that other information elements may be used in place of orin conjunction with tags 30, 32. These elements may be more automatedsuch as, but not limited to, bar code elements, RFID elements, voicechips, fingerprint patches, etc. Such elements may also includeinformation related to the location of the collar 10. For example, thistype of information element may be an electronic transmitter and/orreceiver, or other electronic element, that would help locate a patient,prisoner or other person that has left a hospital or other facilitywithout authority or knowledge by those in charge. Various technologiesmay be used in this regard, such as GPS technology and the same elementmay be used in a number of different manners, including for informationrecording purposes and location identification purposes.

FIGS. 3 and 4A-4D illustrate another embodiment of a lock systemincluding adjustable grommets 50, 52 which are retained on a slide plate54 beneath a holding plate 56. The grommets 50, 52 extend through a slot58 in the holding plate 56 and may slide as a unit along the slot 58 toprovide some adjustment. This adjustment allows the grommets 50, 52 toline up with a pair of slots or holes 60, 62 in the strap 18′ asnecessitated by any given patient or application. As shown in FIG. 4B,the grommets 50, 52 are lined up with the pair of holes 60, 62 in thestrap 18′ and pushed through the strap 18′ thereby pushing a tag 70 awayfrom the strap 18. This tag 70 may be an identification tag aspreviously discussed, which is filled out to identify the personapplying the collar and/or the time of application. FIG. 4C illustratesthe insertion of a lock member 80, such as a zip tie, through thegrommets 50, 52 and FIG. 4D illustrates locking of the zip tie or lockmember 80 into a loop configuration by inserting a free end 82 of thetie through a ratchet portion 84 of the tie 80. Therefore, to remove thelock member or tie 80 the tie 80 is cut between the grommets 50, 52 andthe strap 18′ may then be fully pulled away from the underlyingconnector portion 16.

FIG. 5 illustrates another alternative embodiment of a lock system inthe form of a pivoting plate 90. This plate 90 may be fixed by a pivot92 to one half 12 of the collar 10 and pivoted out of the way, such asshown in dash-dot lines so that a strap 94 may be applied to and removedfrom the underlying connector portion 96. When it is desired to lock thestrap 94 in place and prevent full disconnection of the strap 94 fromthe underlying connector portion 96, the plate 90 may be pivoted overthe strap 94 as shown in solid lines and a hole 98 in the plate 90 maybe placed over a grommet or other suitable anchor member 100 which isfixed to the support portion or half 12 of the collar 10. A lock member110, such as a zip tie, may then be fastened through the grommet oranchor 100, as shown, to lock the pivoting plate 90 in place. Again,when it is desired to unlock and remove the collar 10, the zip tie 110may be cut or otherwise removed, and the pivoting plate 90 may bepivoted out of the way such that the strap 94 may be removed fully fromthe underlying connector portion 96.

FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment in which the strap or connectorsystem of the collar may be of any chosen design, and an identificationtag system 120, 122 may be used generally as previously described. Thistag system would more heavily rely on personnel dealing with the patientto record their identity when either applying the collar 10 or removingthe collar and, optionally, or alternatively also recording the time ofapplication or removal of the collar 10. In addition, or as anotheralternative, such tags 120, 122 may be simply color-coded and seriallydispensed such that the color of the exposed tag would indicate how manytimes the collar had been applied and removed to that particularpatient. For example, a first tag could be colored red, a second tagcould be colored orange and a third tag could be colored yellow.

FIGS. 7A-7C illustrate another aspect of the invention in the form of anintegrated cutting mechanism 130 associated with the lock system of thecollar. In this regard, when the strap 132 is partially lifted and asecond underlying cover 134 is also lifted, this exposes a lever portion136 of a cutter 138. Cover 134, for example, may be comprised of a tagsimilar to a tag or tags 32 as described above, i.e., an “off-time” tagor tags. This would require that the healthcare worker remove the tag134 prior to using the cutter 138, as described below, and prompt theworker to fill out the required information on the tag 134 for placementin the patient's chart or other record-keeping purposes. The tag 134 maytake other forms as well. Pivoting the lever portion 136 of the cutter138 away from the collar 10 as shown in FIGS. 7B and 7C causes the bladeportion 140 to slice through the lock member 142 (e.g., zip tie) suchthat the lock member 142 may be removed and the strap 132 fully pulledaway from the underlying connector portion 144 as previously described.This integrated cutting mechanism 130 would eliminate the need for apair of scissors, for example, or other cutting implement to remove thecollar 10 from the patient.

FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate one additional form of a lock system on acervical collar 200 which may otherwise be of a conventional design. Inthis illustrative embodiment, a pivoting lever arm 202 may be initiallysecured to a plastic piece 204 of the collar 200 during manufacture,such that the lever arm 202 is temporarily secured to the plastic piece204 via, for example, a scored or perforated seam 206. One end of thelever arm 202 is also pivotally connected to another plastic piece 210of the collar 200. As shown in FIG. 8B, the lever arm 202 may be poppedoutwardly relative to the two plastic pieces 204, 210, for example, andyet remain connected to plastic piece 210 by pivot 212. The pivot 212itself may also pop-out or move outwardly such that the lever arm 202may be easily pivoted over a connector strap 220 used to connect thecollar 200 in place around a patient's neck. A suitable lock or latch222 is provided to lock the lever arm 202 in place over the strap 220.This retains the strap 220 and prevents removal of the strap 220 from asupport portion 200 a of the collar 200 until the lever arm 202 isunlocked and pivoted out of the way.

FIGS. 9A-9C illustrate movement of the lever arm 202 initially outwardly(FIG. 9A) such that the pivot 212 moves outwardly along its axis 212 a,and then downwardly in a pivoting motion for engagement with a latch,lock member or any other suitable retaining structure 222. In thisexample, the latch 222 may be a connector which is initially pushedoutwardly as shown in FIG. 9A for engagement with a recess 224 in thelever arm 202 as shown in FIG. 9B and then pushed inwardly as shown inFIG. 9C for firmer engagement with the lever arm 202. To facilitaterotation of the lever back upwardly for removal of the connector strap220, for example, the latch 222 may be pushed outwardly again as shownin FIG. 9B.

FIG. 10 illustrates another alterative embodiment of a lock systemcomprising a removable transverse lock member 250, which may be aflexible strap or a more rigid member, secured across a connector strap252 of the collar 254 using suitable fasteners, such as push-typefasteners 256, 258, sometimes referred to as “Christmas tree” fasteners.These fasteners 256, 258 may be simply pushed into existing holes 260,262 in one or more plastic pieces of the collar 254. When it is desiredto remove the collar 254, the transverse lock member 250 may be removedby pulling the christmas tree fasteners 256, 258 out or pushing themfrom the opposite side, whichever is easiest.

FIG. 11 illustrates another alternative lock system comprising aflexible strap 270 which may be pre-fixed to the collar 272 and whichmay be placed over the connector strap 274 of the collar 272 and securedin place by a suitable fastener 276, such as the above-mentionedchristmas tree type fastener received in a hole 278 in strap 270 andanother hole (not shown) in the underlying collar portion.

As shown in FIG. 12A and 12B, the lock member or strap 270 in this casemay be initially stored in a concealed location behind a plastic piece280 of the collar 272 and pulled out when needed, as shown in FIG. 12B,for removably fastening over the connector strap 274 of the collar 272.

FIGS. 13 and 13A illustrate additional alternative embodiments of a locksystem which may comprise a sock or tubular-type structure 282, 282′placed over the end 284 a of any existing conventional collar 284allowing the lock system to be supplied and used as an aftermarket item.The sock 282 may be suitably secured on the end 284 a of the collar 284with adhesive Velcro or other types of straps 286, as shown, or anothertype of retaining structure may be used on the collar and/or sock ortubular member 282 itself. Another alternative is shown in FIG. 13A inwhich reinforced holes 288 are provided to receive push fasteners 290above and below the collar 284. The sock or tubular member may insteadsimply be retained by friction or in some other manner. The lock systemmay comprise any of the lock systems contemplated within the scope ofthe present invention, however, for purposes of illustration only apivoting lever arm 292 is shown with engagement structure for mating toa suitable latch or other connector element 294 on the sock 282 forsecuring the pivoting lever arm 292 over a connector strap (not shown),for example, retained on an area of hook or loop fastening material 298fixed to the sock or tubular member 282. It will be appreciated thatonce the sock or tubular member 282 is suitable secured to the end 284 aof the collar 284, it can act as the end of the collar for securinganother portion of the collar thereto and for supplying the desiredlocking system in accordance with the inventive principles. It will alsobe appreciated that any other combination of features may be provided onsock or tubular member 282 in accordance with the invention, includinglock system components and/or identifier or information elements (e.g.,tags, etc.).

FIG. 14 illustrates another alternative locking system comprising apivoting lever lock-type bar 300 which may be in another of the formspreviously described or otherwise within the scope of the presentinvention, and which may be pivoted over the connecting strap 302 of thecollar 304 and retained in place with a latch 306 by way of a projection308 on the underside of the latch 306 that is received within a grooveor slot 310 in the lever 300. When the lever 300 is pivoted toward thelatch 306 the latch 306 may slightly bias away from the lever 300 as thelever 300 slides underneath. The latch 306 will spring back slightlytoward the lever 300 when the projection 308 aligns with the slot orgroove 310 thereby retaining the lever 300 in place over the connectorstrap 302 of the collar 304. Inward force on the end 300 a of the lever300 followed by rotation of the lever 300 upwardly will release thelever 300 from the latch 306.

With respect to any of the embodiments described above, any of thevarious components of the restraint device, such as a cervical collar,may be formed so as to have high visibility to the user. This willassist, for example, in securing the device under adverse conditionssuch as in dark places or at night. Various high visibility features maybe used to achieve this, such as the use of various fluorescentmaterials, reflective materials, luminescent materials and/or glow inthe dark materials. Such high visibility features may be used especiallyon those smaller components such as straps, lock elements, andidentifier or information elements as generally described above so thatthese elements are more easily seen and manipulated by the user. The useof areas of high visibility will assist with, for example, any securing,fastening, and/or indicating steps associated with the methods describedand claimed herein.

While the present invention has been illustrated by a description ofvarious preferred embodiments and while these embodiments has beendescribed in some detail, it is not the intention of the Applicant torestrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to suchdetail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear tothose skilled in the art. The various features of the invention may beused alone or in any combination depending on the needs and preferencesof the user. This has been a description of the present invention, alongwith the preferred methods of practicing the present invention ascurrently known. However, the invention itself should only be defined bythe appended claims, wherein

1. A cervical collar, comprising: a first support portion configured toextend around and support a first portion of the neck of a patient; asecond support portion configured to extend around and support a secondportion of the neck of the patient; a first connector portion coupledwith the first support portion; a second connector portion coupled withthe second support portion, said first and second connector portionshaving respective first and second coupling members capable of beingselectively connected together to secure the first and second supportportions around the first and second portions of the neck of the patientand disconnected to release the first and second support portions fromaround the first and second portions of the neck of the patient; and aninformation element carried on at least one of the first and secondsupport portions, said information element indicating at least oneof: 1) who placed the cervical collar on the patient, 2) who removed thecollar from the patient, 3) what time the collar was placed on thepatient, 4) what time the collar was removed from the patient, and 5)the location of the patient.
 2. The cervical collar of claim 1, whereinthe information element further comprises a plurality of removable tags,each tag having indicia indicating at least one of: 1) who placed thecervical collar on the patient, 2) who removed the collar from thepatient, 3) what time the collar was placed on the patient, and 4) whattime the collar was removed from the patient, and wherein each of thetags has a unique identifier to indicate to a medical professionalwhether or not the collar has been removed from the patient afterinitial placement on the patient.
 3. The cervical collar of claim 2,wherein the unique identifier further comprises a different color oneach of the removable tags.
 4. The cervical collar of claim 1, whereinthe information element further comprises at least one of amachine-readable element, a voice chip, and an electronic locatingelement.
 5. The cervical collar of claim 4, wherein the machine-readableelement further comprises at least one of a bar code element, an RFIDelement and a fingerprint patch.
 6. The cervical collar of claim 1,wherein at least one of the first support portion, second supportportion, first connector portion, second connector portion, andinformation element is formed so as to have high visibility to the user.7. The cervical collar of claim 6, wherein the high visibility isachieved using at least one material selected from the group consistingof: fluorescent materials, reflective materials, luminescent materialsand glow-in-the-dark materials.
 8. A cervical collar, comprising: afirst support portion configured to extend around and support a firstportion of the neck of a patient; a second support portion configured toextend around and support a second portion of the neck of the patient; afirst connector portion coupled with the first support portion; a secondconnector portion coupled with the second support portion, said firstand second connector portions having respective first and secondcoupling members capable of being selectively connected together tosecure the first and second support portions around the first and secondportions of the neck of the patient and disconnected to release thefirst and second support portions from around the first and secondportions of the neck of the patient; and a plurality of removable tagscarried on at least one of the first and second support portions, eachof said removable tags having a unique identifier to indicate to amedical professional whether or not the collar has been removed from apatient after initial placement on the patient.
 9. The cervical collarof claim 8, wherein the unique identifier further comprises a differentcolor on each of the removable tags.
 10. The cervical collar of claim 8,wherein at least one of the first support portion, second supportportion, first connector portion, second connector portion, andplurality of removable tags is formed so as to have high visibility tothe user.
 11. The cervical collar of claim 10, wherein the highvisibility is achieved using at least one material selected from thegroup consisting of: fluorescent materials, reflective materials,luminescent materials and glow-in-the-dark materials.
 12. A method ofattaching a cervical collar to a patient, comprising: securing a firstsupport portion of the cervical collar around a first portion of theneck of a patient; securing a second support portion of the cervicalcollar around a second portion of the neck of the patient; fastening afirst connector portion coupled with the first support portion to asecond connector portion coupled with the second support portion tosecurely couple the first and second support portions to the neck of thepatient thereby securely immobilizing the neck of the patient; andindicating with an information element associated with the collar atleast one of: 1) who placed the cervical collar on a patient, 2) whattime the collar was placed on a patient, and 3) the location of thepatient.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising: disconnectingthe first connector portion from the second connector portion to removethe first and second support portions from the neck of the patient; andindicating with an information element associated with the collar atleast one of: 1) who removed the collar from the patient, and 2) whattime the collar was removed from the patient.
 14. The method of claim12, further comprising: using an area of high visibility on the collarto assist with at least one of the securing, fastening and indicatingsteps.
 15. A method of attaching a cervical collar to a patient,comprising: securing a first support portion of the cervical collararound a first portion of the neck of a patient; securing a secondsupport portion of the cervical collar around a second portion of theneck of the patient; fastening a first connector portion coupled withthe first support portion to a second connector portion coupled with thesecond support portion to securely couple the first and second supportportions to the neck of the patient thereby securely immobilizing theneck of the patient; and indicating with an element associated with thecollar whether the collar was previously removed from the patient. 16.The method of claim 15, wherein the indicating step is performed byusing color-coded elements associated with the collar.
 17. The method ofclaim 15, further comprising: using an area of high visibility on thecollar to assist with at least one of the securing, fastening andindicating steps.
 18. A restraint device for a person, the devicecomprising: a first restraint portion configured to extend around afirst portion of the person; a second restraint portion configured toextend around a second portion of the person; a first connector portioncoupled with the first restraint portion; a second connector portioncoupled with the second restraint portion, said first and secondconnector portions having respective first and second coupling memberscapable of being selectively connected together to secure the first andsecond restraint portions around the first and second portions of theperson and disconnected to release the first and second restraintportions from around the first and second portions of the person; and aninformation element carried on at least one of the first and secondrestraint portions, said information element indicating at least oneof: 1) who placed the restraint device on the person, 2) who removed therestraint device from the person, 3) what time the restraint device wasplaced on the person, and 4) what time the restraint device was removedfrom the person.
 19. A restraint device for a person, the devicecomprising: a first restraint portion configured to extend around afirst portion of the person; a second restraint portion configured toextend around a second portion of the person; a first connector portioncoupled with the first restraint portion; a second connector portioncoupled with the second restraint portion, said first and secondconnector portions having respective first and second coupling memberscapable of being selectively connected together to secure the first andsecond restraint portions around the first and second portions of theperson and disconnected to release the first and second restraintportions from around the first and second portions of the person; and aplurality of removable tags carried on at least one of the first andsecond restraint portions, each of said removable tags having a uniqueidentifier to indicate to a medical professional whether or not therestraint device has been removed from the person after initialplacement on the person.
 20. A method of attaching a restraint device toa person, comprising: securing a first restraint portion of the devicearound a first portion of the person; securing a second restraintportion of the device around a second portion of the person; fastening afirst connector portion coupled with the first restraint portion to asecond connector portion coupled with the second restraint portion tosecurely couple the first and second restraint portions to the personthereby securely restraining at least part of the person; and indicatingwith an information element associated with the device at least oneof: 1) who placed the restraint device on the person, and 2) what timethe restraint device was placed on the person.
 21. A method of attachinga restraint device to a person, comprising: securing a first restraintportion of the device around a first portion of the person; securing asecond restraint portion of the device around a second portion of theperson; fastening a first connector portion coupled with the firstrestraint portion to a second connector portion coupled with the secondrestraint portion to securely couple the first and second restraintportions to the person thereby securely restraining at least part of theperson; and indicating with an element associated with the devicewhether the device was previously removed from the person.
 22. Arestraint device for limiting movement of a wearer, the restraint devicecomprising: at least a first restraint portion configured to extendaround at least a first portion of the wearer; and an electronicinformation element associated with the first restraint portion, theinformation element configured to transmit information related to thewearer of the restraint device.
 23. The restraint device of claim 22,wherein the information element is configured to transmit informationrelated to a location of the wearer.
 24. The restraint device of claim22, wherein the information element is further configured to recordinformation related to the wearer of the restraint device.
 25. Therestraint device of claim 22, wherein the information element transmitsinformation by radio frequency signals.
 26. The restraint device ofclaim 22, further comprising: a second restraint portion configured toextend around at least a second portion of the wearer; said first andsecond restraint portions capable of being selectively connectedtogether to thereby form the first and second restraint portions into anannular configuration and secure the first and second support portionsaround the first and second portions of the wearer, and selectivelydisconnected to release the first and second restraint portions fromaround the first and second portions of the wearer; and a lock membercoupled to at least one of the first and second restraint portions toselectively prevent the first and second restraint portions from beingdisconnected in a manner that would allow the release of the first andsecond restraint portions from around the first and second portions ofthe wearer when engaged with the at least one first and second restraintportions.